Search

Comprehensive biodiversity assessments play an essential role in strengthening global and national conservation strategies. The recently announced first US National Nature Assessment provides a unparalleled opportunity to comprehensively review status and trends of biodiversity at all levels; this broad context can then help coordinate actions to conserve individual species and ecosystems. The scientific assessments informing the Global Biodiversity Framework adopted at the 2022 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) conference of parties provide models for synthesizing information on trends at multiple levels of biodiversity, including decline in abundance and distribution of species, loss of populations and genetic diversity, and degradation and loss of ecosystems and their services, along with data on drivers of biodiversity loss and pathways to their mitigation. The US national assessment can augment such global analyses and avoid the pitfalls encountered by previous US efforts by ensuring policy-relevant design, data accessibility, and inclusivity in both process and product, and by incorporating spatial data relevant to both national and subnational audiences. Although the US is not formally a CBD party, an effective NNA should take full advantage of the global context by including targets and indicators adopted at the 2022 meeting and incorporating an independent review mechanism that supports periodic stocktaking and ratcheting up of ambition in response to any identified shortfalls in stemming biodiversity loss. The challenges to design of an effective US assessment are also relevant globally as nations develop assessments and reporting to support the post-2020 global biodiversity targets. By considering and incorporating the diverse ways in which society values and benefits from nature, such assessments can help bridge the gap between research and conservation practice and communicate the extent of the biodiversity crisis to the public, fostering broad-based support for transformative change in humanity’s relationship to the natural world.

Despite its successes, the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) has proven challenging to implement due to funding limitations, workload backlog, and other problems. As threats to species survival intensify and as more species come under threat, the need for the ESA and similar conservation laws and policies in other countries to function efficiently has grown. Attempts by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to streamline ESA decisions include multispecies recovery plans and habitat conservation plans. We address species status assessment (SSA), a USFWS process to inform ESA decisions from listing to recovery, within the context of multispecies and ecosystem planning. Although existing SSAs have a single-species focus, ecosystem-based research can efficiently inform multiple SSAs within a region and provide a foundation for transition to multispecies SSAs in the future. We considered at-risk grassland species and ecosystems within the southeastern United States, where a disproportionate number of rare and endemic species are associated with grasslands. To initiate our ecosystem-based approach, we used a combined literature-based and structured World Café workshop format to identify science needs for SSAs. Discussions concentrated on 5 categories of threats to grassland species and ecosystems, consistent with recommendations to make shared threats a focus of planning under the ESA: (1) habitat loss, fragmentation, and disruption of functional connectivity; (2) climate change; (3) altered disturbance regimes; (4) invasive species; and (5) localized impacts. For each threat, workshop participants identified science and information needs, including database availability, research priorities, and modeling and mapping needs. Grouping species by habitat and shared threats can make the SSA process and other planning processes for conservation of at-risk species worldwide more efficient and useful. We found a combination of literature review and structured discussion effective for identifying the scientific information and analysis needed to support the development of multiple SSAs. Article impact statement: Species status assessments can be improved by an ecosystem-based approach that groups imperiled species by shared habitats and threats.Mejoramiento de la Evaluación del Estado de una Especie bajo el Acta de Especies en Peligro de los Estados Unidos y Sus Consecuencias para los Retos de la Conservación Multiespecie a Nivel Mundial Resumen A pesar de su éxito, el Acta de Especies en Peligro de los E.U.A. (AEP) ha sido un reto de implementación por las limitaciones en su financiamiento, el retraso en la carga de trabajo y otros problemas. Conforme se intensifican las amenazas a la supervivencia de las especies y más especies resultan amenazadas, aumenta la necesidad de que la AEP y las políticas similares de otros países funcionen efectivamente. Los intentos por parte del Servicio Estadounidense de Pesca y Fauna (SEPF) para optimizar las decisiones de la AEP incluyen planes multiespecie de recuperación y planes de conservación de hábitat (PRH). Abordamos la evaluación del estado de las especies (EEE), un proceso del SEPF para orientar las decisiones del AEP desde el listado hasta la recuperación, dentro del contexto de la planeación multiespecie y de ecosistemas. Aunque las EEE existentes tienen un enfoque sobre una única especie, la investigación basada en el ecosistema puede orientar eficientemente a múltiples EEE dentro de una región y proporcionar una base para la transición a las EEE multiespecie en el futuro. Consideramos a las especies y los ecosistemas en riesgo de los pastizales del sureste de los Estados Unidos, en donde un número desproporcionado de especies raras y endémicas está asociado con los pastizales. Para iniciar nuestra estrategia basada en el ecosistema, usamos un formato de taller de World Café estructurado y basado en la literatura para identificar la necesidad de tener EEE. Las discusiones se centraron en cinco categorías de amenazas para las especies y ecosistemas de los pastizales, consistentes con las recomendaciones para volver a las amenazas compartidas un foco de la planeación bajo la AEP: (1) pérdida del hábitat, fragmentación y disrupción de la conectividad funcional; (2) cambio climático; (3) regímenes alterados de perturbación; (4) especies invasoras; y (5) impactos localizados. Para cada amenaza, los participantes del taller identificaron las necesidades científicas y de información, incluyendo la disponibilidad de bases de datos, prioridades de la investigación y necesidades de modelado y mapeado. La agrupación de las especies por hábitat y amenaza compartida puede hacer más eficientes y útiles el proceso de EEE y otros procesos de planeación de la conservación de especies en riesgo a nivel mundial. Encontramos una combinación de revisiones bibliográficas y discusiones estructuradas para identificar la información y el análisis necesarios para respaldar el desarrollo de múltiples EEE.尽管《美国濒危物种法案》 (U.S. Endangered Species Act, ESA) 已取得一定成功, 但由于资金限制、工作量积压及其它问题, 该法案的实施仍面临挑战。随着威胁的加剧和受到威胁的物种增加, 人们对于 ESA 及其它国家类似的保护法律和政策发挥有效作用的需求也越来越强烈。同时, 美国鱼类及野生动物管理局也在努力简化包括多物种恢复计划和栖息地保护计划在内的ESA决策过程。本研究以多物种和生态系统规划为背景, 进行了物种状态评估, 这是美国鱼类及野生动物管理局为物种从列入名录到恢复的一系列ESA决策提供信息的过程。现有的物种状态评估侧重于单一物种, 而基于生态系统的研究则可以有效地指导一个区域内多个物种状态评估过程, 并为未来向多物种状态评估过渡提供基础。本研究关注美国东南部濒危的草地物种和生态系统, 该地区草地稀有种和特有种的数量不成比例得高。为了实施基于生态系统的方法, 我们将基于文献和结构化世界咖啡馆研讨会的形式相结合, 以确定物种状态估计的科学需求。我们集中讨论了草地物种和生态系统面临的5类威胁, 并建议将共同存在的威胁作为ESA的规划重点, 这些威胁包括 (1) 栖息地丧失、破碎化和功能连接度中断; (2) 气候变化; (3) 干扰情况变化; (4) 入侵物种; (5) 局部地区的影响。研讨会参与者确定了每种威胁的科学需求和信息需求, 包括数据库可用性、优先研究内容以及建模和测绘需求。根据栖息地和共同威胁对物种进行分组, 可以使物种状态评估过程和全球其它濒危物种保护的规划过程更加有用和高效。我们发现, 将文献综述与结构化讨论相结合, 可以有效地确定支持多个物种状态评估发展所需的科学信息和分析。【翻译: 胡怡思; 审校: 聂永刚】.

Expansion of the global protected‐area network has been proposed as a strategy to address threats from accelerating climate change and species extinction. A key step in increasing the effectiveness of such expansion is understanding how novel threats to biodiversity from climate change alter concepts such as rewilding, which have underpinned many proposals for large interconnected reserves. We reviewed potential challenges that climate change poses to rewilding and found that the conservation value of large protected areas persists under climate change. Nevertheless, more attention should be given to protection of microrefugia, macrorefugia, complete environmental gradients, and areas that connect current and future suitable climates and to maintaining ecosystem processes and stabilizing feedbacks via conservation strategies that are resilient to uncertainty regarding climate trends. Because a major element of the threat from climate change stems from its novel geographic patterns, we examined, as an example, the implications for climate‐adaptation planning of latitudinal, longitudinal (continental to maritime), and elevational gradients in climate‐change exposure across the Yellowstone‐to‐Yukon region, the locus of an iconic conservation proposal initially designed to conserve wide‐ranging carnivore species. In addition to a continued emphasis on conserving intact landscapes, restoration of degraded low‐elevation areas within the region is needed to capture sites important for landscape‐level climate resilience. Extreme climate exposure projected for boreal North America suggests the need for ambitious goals for expansion of the protected‐area network there to include refugia created by topography and ecological features, such as peatlands, whose conservation can also reduce emissions from carbon stored in soil. Qualitative understanding of underlying reserve design rules and the geography of climate‐change exposure can strengthen the outcomes of inclusive regional planning processes that identify specific sites for protection., Article Impact Statement: Rewilding concepts updated to consider climate change increase mitigation and biodiversity conservation gain from protected area expansion.

Traffic noise is known to negatively affect many wildlife species by interfering with foraging behavior. Frogs often lay their eggs in roadside ditches because they are predator-free, but it is possible that traffic noise could reduce the survival and fitness of tadpoles, creating an ecological trap. In a series of lab experiments, we tested whether traffic noise has a negative impact on tadpole feeding behavior, whether this is mediated by changes in tadpole activity, and whether there is any impact on tadpole growth rate or metamorphosis. Traffic noise exposure significantly reduced the amount of food consumed by Cuban Treefrog (Osteopilus septentrionalis) tadpoles. Traffic noise exposure also increased the activity level of both Southern Toad (Anaxyrus terrestris) and Cuban Treefrog tadpoles, which could possibly make them more noticeable to predators in the wild. However, these behavioral changes were not associated with changes in growth rate or timing of metamorphosis. We caution, however, that this study aimed to isolate the specific impact of traffic noise, and did not investigate other road effects that may be damaging to tadpoles.

Global targets for the percentage area of land protected, such as 30% by 2030, have gained increasing prominence, but both their scientific basis and likely effectiveness have been questioned. As with emissions-reduction targets based on desired climate outcomes, percentage-protected targets combine values and science by estimating the area over which conservation actions are required to help achieve desired biodiversity outcomes. Protected areas are essential for achieving many biodiversity targets, in part because many species are highly sensitive to human-associated disturbance. However, because the contribution of protected areas to biodiversity outcomes is contingent on their location, management, governance, threats, and what occurs across the broader landscape matrix, global percentage-protected targets are unavoidably empirical generalizations of ecological patterns and processes across diverse geographies. Percentage-protected targets are insufficient in isolation but can complement other actions and contribute to biodiversity outcomes within a framework that balances accuracy and pragmatism in a global context characterized by imperfect biodiversity data. Ideally, percentage-protected targets serve as anchors that strengthen comprehensive national biodiversity strategies by communicating the level of ambition necessary to reverse current trends of biodiversity loss. If such targets are to fulfill this role within the complex societal process by which both values and science impel conservation actions, conservation scientists must clearly communicate the nature of the evidence base supporting percentage-protected targets and how protected areas can function within a broader landscape managed for sustainable coexistence between people and nature. A new paradigm for protected and conserved areas recognizes that national coordination, incentives, and monitoring should support rather than undermine diverse locally led conservation initiatives. However, the definition of a conserved area must retain a strong focus on biodiversity to remain consistent with the evidence base from which percentage-protected targets were originally derived.Las metas globales del porcentaje de área de suelo protegido, como el de 30% para el 2030, han obtenido una prominencia incrementada, a pesar de que se les cuestionen sus bases científicas y la probabilidad de su efectividad. Así como las metas de reducción de emisiones, las metas de porcentaje de protección combinan valores y ciencia mediante la estimación del área que requiere acciones de conservación para ayudar a lograr los resultados deseados de biodiversidad. Las áreas protegidas son esenciales para alcanzar muchas metas de biodiversidad, en parte porque muchas especies son altamente sensibles a las perturbaciones asociadas con el humano. Sin embargo, debido a que la contribución de las áreas protegidas a los resultados de biodiversidad depende de su ubicación, gestión, manejo, amenazas y lo que ocurra a lo largo de la amplia matriz del paisaje, las metas de porcentaje de protección son generalizaciones empíricas inevitables de los patrones y procesos ecológicos en la geografía diversa. Las metas de porcentaje de protección son insuficientes por sí solas, pero pueden complementar a otras acciones y contribuir a los resultados de biodiversidad dentro de un marco de trabajo que balancee la exactitud y el pragmatismo dentro de un contexto global caracterizado por datos imperfectos de la biodiversidad. Idealmente, las metas de porcentaje de protección fungen como pilares que fortalecen las estrategias nacionales integrales de biodiversidad mediante la comunicación del nivel de ambición necesaria para revertir las tendencias actuales de pérdida de la biodiversidad. Si se espera que dichas metas realicen este papel dentro del complejo proceso social en el que tanto los valores como la ciencia impulsan las acciones de conservación, los científicos de la conservación deben comunicar claramente la naturaleza de la base de evidencias que respalda las metas de porcentaje de protección y cómo las áreas protegidas pueden funcionar dentro de un paisaje más amplio gestionado por la coexistencia sustentable entre la naturaleza y las personas. Un nuevo paradigma para las áreas protegidas y conservadas reconoce que la coordinación nacional, los incentivos y el monitoreo deberían respaldar, y no debilitar, a las diferentes iniciativas de conservación llevadas por la población local. Sin embargo, la definición de un área conservada debe mantener un enfoque sólido sobre la biodiversidad para seguir siendo coherente con la base de evidencias de la cual derivaron originalmente las metas de porcentaje de protección.【摘要】关于土地保护面积百分比的全球目标(比如到2030年达到30%的土地保护面积)已经获得了越来越多的关注, 同时其科学基础和有效性也受到了质疑。与基于预期气候结果的减排目标一样, 保护百分比目标通过估计需要多大面积来采取保护行动以帮助实现预期生物多样性结果, 以来将价值观与科学相结合。保护区对于实现许多生物多样性目标来说至关重要, 一部分原因是许多物种对人类干扰十分敏感。然而, 保护区对生物多样性结果的贡献取决于其位置、管理、治理、面临的威胁以及在整个更广泛的景观基质中存在的问题, 因此, 全球保护百分比目标不可避免地是对不同地理区域的生态格局和过程的经验概括。虽然仅仅设立保护百分比目标是不够的, 但可以采取其它行动作为补充; 在生物多样性数据不完善的全球背景下, 还可以将保护百分比目标纳入平衡准确性和实用性的框架内, 以促进生物多样性保护成果。在理想情况下, 保护百分比目标可以作为锚点, 通过表现出雄心壮志来扭转当前生物多样性丧失趋势, 来强化国家生物多样性综合战略。如果想让这些目标在由价值观和科学共同推动保护行动的复杂社会过程中发挥作用, 保护科学家必须清楚地阐明支持保护百分比目标的证据基础, 以及保护区在以人与自然可持续共存为目标进行管理的更广泛的景观中如何发挥作用。新的保护区范式应认识到, 国家水平的协调、激励和监测工作应支持而非破坏地方领导的各种保护措施。然而, 在定义保护区时必须保有对生物多样性的高度关注, 以确保与最初得出保护百分比目标的证据基础保持一致。【翻译 :胡怡思;审校 :聂永刚】.

Assemblages of large mammal species play a disproportionate role in the structure and composition of natural habitats. Loss of these assemblages destabilizes natural systems, while their recovery can restore ecological integrity. Here we take an ecoregion-based approach to identify landscapes that retain their historically present large mammal assemblages, and map ecoregions where reintroduction of 1–3 species could restore intact assemblages. Intact mammal assemblages occur across more than one-third of the 730 terrestrial ecoregions where large mammals were historically present, and 22% of these ecoregions retain complete assemblages across > 20% of the ecoregion area. Twenty species, if reintroduced or allowed to recolonize through improved connectivity, can increase the area of the world containing intact large mammal assemblages by 54% (11 116 000 km 2). Each of these species have at least two large, intact habitat areas (> 10 000 km 2) in a given ecoregion. Timely integration of recovery efforts for large mammals strengthens area-based targets being considered under the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Because resources are finite, conservation practices can be based on shortcuts (i.e., a quicker way to a desired outcome). For example, indicator species are often used as a shortcut to justify conservation at greater organizational levels (i.e., communities, ecosystems, landscapes). Conversely, "coarse-filter" approaches to protect landscapes are often assumed to conserve organizational levels nested within that landscape. But is conservation biology fundamentally different from other applied sciences, in which shortcuts appear rare or absent? To evaluate this question requires a rarity; much data across organizational levels in numerous well-defined systems. We used data collected in vernal pools (N = 61) in greater San Diego, California and seasonal wetlands (N = 70) in Florida. Data for plant species of concern, plant community diversity, ecosystem function, and landscape integrity were evaluated using partial least-squares structural equation models. Three a priori alternative models for each of the indicator species and coarse-filter approaches were tested, where models varied in complexity and included shortcuts between organizational levels. We found little support for shortcuts connecting distant levels, but species of concern and community diversity were always significantly and strongly interrelated. We conclude that species of concern often predict community diversity (and vice versa) but shortcuts between more distant organizational levels are hard to find. Given that study systems here were numerous, discrete and relatively small (i.e., well-described), we expect that effective shortcuts will be difficult to demonstrate for many other systems that do not share all those attributes. Thus we suggest that regional ensemble conservation goals and approaches will be more often effective than relying on assumed conservation shortcuts with little evidence.

Extinction rates are expected to increase during the Anthropocene. Current extinction rates of plants and many animals remain unknown. We quantified extinctions among the vascular flora of the continental United States and Canada since European settlement. We compiled data on apparently extinct species by querying plant conservation databases, searching the literature, and vetting the resulting list with botanical experts. Because taxonomic opinion varies widely, we developed an index of taxonomic uncertainty (ITU). The ITU ranges from A to F, with A indicating unanimous taxonomic recognition and F indicating taxonomic recognition by only a single author. The ITU allowed us to rigorously evaluate extinction rates. Our data suggest that 51 species and 14 infraspecific taxa, representing 33 families and 49 genera of vascular plants, have become extinct in our study area since European settlement. Seven of these taxa exist in cultivation but are extinct in the wild. Most extinctions occurred in the west, but this outcome may reflect the timing of botanical exploration relative to settlement. Sixty‐four percent of extinct plants were single‐site endemics, and many occurred outside recognized biodiversity hotspots. Given the paucity of plant surveys in many areas, particularly prior to European settlement, the actual extinction rate of vascular plants is undoubtedly much higher than indicated here., Article impact statement: The number of presumed extinct plants from the continental United States and Canada is much greater than previously recognized.

Much of the southeastern United States was covered by grassland vegetation (including savannas, woodlands, glades, and other open vegetation) prior to EuroAmerican settlement. This was particularly true for the southeastern Coastal Plain, where pine savanna/woodland covered roughly two-thirds of the landscape. However, grasslands were also prominent in other subregions of the Southeast. Collectively, these grasslands held a large proportion of the biodiversity of the Southeast, but they have suffered more serious declines than forests, estimated as around 90% for all types combined. This article summarizes major types of grassland in the region, factors responsible for creating and maintaining them, factors contributing to high levels of biodiversity in these communities, and prospects for the future.

The establishment of protected areas is a critical strategy for conserving biodiversity. Key policy directives like the Aichi targets seek to expand protected areas to 17% of Earth's land surface, with calls by some conservation biologists for much more. However, in places such as the United States, Germany, and Australia, attempts to increase protected areas are meeting strong resistance from communities, industry groups, and governments. We examined case studies of such resistance in Victoria, Australia, Bavaria, Germany, and Florida, United States. We considered 4 ways to tackle this problem. First, broaden the case for protected areas beyond nature conservation to include economic, human health, and other benefits, and translate these into a persuasive business case for protected areas. Second, better communicate the conservation values of protected areas. This should include highlighting how many species, communities, and ecosystems have been conserved by protected areas and the counterfactual (i.e., what would have been lost without protected area establishment). Third, consider zoning of activities to ensure the maintenance of effective management. Finally, remind citizens to think about conservation when they vote, including holding politicians accountable for their environmental promises. Without tackling resistance to expanding the protected estate, it will be impossible to reach conservation targets, and this will undermine attempts to stem the global extinction crisis.

Roadside Animal Detection Systems (RADS) aim to reduce the frequency of wildlife-vehicle collisions. Unlike fencing and wildlife passages, RADS do not attempt to keep animals off the road; rather, they attempt to modify driver behavior by detecting animals near the road and warning drivers with flashing signs. A RADS was installed in Big Cypress National Park (Florida, USA) in 2012 in response to an increased number of Florida panther mortalities. To assess driver response, we measured the speed of individual cars on the road when the RADS was active (flashing) and inactive (not flashing) during the tourist season (November-March) and the off-season (April-October), which vary dramatically in traffic volume. We also used track beds and camera traps to assess whether roadside activity of large mammal species varied between seasons. In the tourist season, the activation of the RADS caused a significant reduction in vehicle speed. However, this effect was not observed in the off-season. Track and camera data showed that the tourist season coincided with peak periods of activity for several large mammals of conservation interest. Drivers in the tourist season generally drove faster than those in the off-season, so a reduction in speed in response to the RADS is more beneficial in the tourist season. Because traffic volume and roadside activity of several species of conservation interest both peak during the tourist season, our study indicates that the RADS has the potential to reduce the number of accidents during this period of heightened risk.

We assess progress toward the protection of 50% of the terrestrial biosphere to address the species-extinction crisis and conserve a global ecological heritage for future generations. Using a map of Earth's 846 terrestrial ecoregions, we show that 98 ecoregions (12%) exceed Half Protected; 313 ecoregions (37%) fall short of Half Protected but have sufficient unaltered habitat remaining to reach the target; and 207 ecoregions (24%) are in peril, where an average of only 4% of natural habitat remains. We propose a Global Deal for Nature—a companion to the Paris Climate Deal—to promote increased habitat protection and restoration, national- and ecoregion-scale conservation strategies, and the empowerment of indigenous peoples to protect their sovereign lands. The goal of such an accord would be to protect half the terrestrial realm by 2050 to halt the extinction crisis while sustaining human livelihoods.

Bastin et al.’s estimate (Reports, 5 July 2019, p. 76) that tree planting for climate change mitigation could sequester 205 gigatonnes of carbon is approximately five times too large. Their analysis inflated soil organic carbon gains, failed to safeguard against warming from trees at high latitudes and elevations, and considered afforestation of savannas, grasslands, and shrublands to be restoration., Funding: Supported by the Texas A&M Sid Kyle Global Savanna Research Initiative (T.W.B.); Swiss National Science Foundation (20FI20_173691) (N.B.); Centre National pour la Recherche Scientifique CNRS PICS 2018-2020 (RESIGRASS) (E.B.); CNPq (Brazil, 303179/2016-3) (G.D.); CNPq (Brazil) (G.W.F.); CNPq (Brazil, 303988/2018-5) (A.F.); NASA award NNX17AK14G (F.F.); NSF award 1354943 (W.A.H.); Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (Brazil, 2016/13232-5) (S.L.S.); the Office of the Royal Society (IC170015) (C.E.R.L.); CNPq (Brazil, 310345/2018-9) (G.E.O.); the Spanish Government (FIROTIC, PGC2018-096569-B-I00) (J.G.P.); the National Research Foundation (ACCESS, 114695) (N.S.); CNPq (Brazil, 303568/2017-8) (F.A.O.S.); NSF awards 1342703 and 1926431 (C.J.S. and D.M.G.); NSF award EAR-1253713 (C.A.E.S.); Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft grant 5579 POEM (V.M.T.); and USDA-NIFA Sustainable Agricultural Systems Grant 12726253 (J.W.V.)

I am fortunate to have had wild places close to home for most of my life, places to which I could escape from the nerve-shattering madness of civilization. Woods, creeks, ponds, old fields, pastures, abandoned limestone quarries—all places that were damaged to varying degrees by humans but in which people do not now have a dominating presence. None of these places could be called wilderness by any stretch of the imagination. They are not natural areas in the pure sense of the term. They are semi-natural, but they are wild. Processes as old as life on Earth still operate within them, not completely overwhelmed by human activity and technology. And they are quiet, except for the songs of birds, frogs, and insects, the bubbling of brooks, the wind through the trees, and occasional sounds of automobiles, airplanes, or guns in the distance. These have been places where, since childhood, I could relax but also feel exhilarated, where I could contemplate difficult questions about life and death, where I could exercise my body and break a sweat, and where I could hone my skills as a naturalist. The other beings in a wild place, and even the rocks and waters, feel like friends and family. I am never alone there.

The Global Deal for Nature sets an ambitious agenda to protect our biosphere through ecosystem conservation and land restoration., The Global Deal for Nature (GDN) is a time-bound, science-driven plan to save the diversity and abundance of life on Earth. Pairing the GDN and the Paris Climate Agreement would avoid catastrophic climate change, conserve species, and secure essential ecosystem services. New findings give urgency to this union: Less than half of the terrestrial realm is intact, yet conserving all native ecosystems—coupled with energy transition measures—will be required to remain below a 1.5°C rise in average global temperature. The GDN targets 30% of Earth to be formally protected and an additional 20% designated as climate stabilization areas, by 2030, to stay below 1.5°C. We highlight the 67% of terrestrial ecoregions that can meet 30% protection, thereby reducing extinction threats and carbon emissions from natural reservoirs. Freshwater and marine targets included here extend the GDN to all realms and provide a pathway to ensuring a more livable biosphere.